Petit tour de Bourgogne: which way and when to ride
The best month for Petit tour de Bourgogne is October: 76% of days were dry with highs of 10–30 °C. In October the wind barely favours either direction — on average 0.1 km/h along the route (ERA5 2006–2025, daytime 9:00–18:00).
Weather by month
| Month | Good days | Rain days ≥ 1 mm | Rain, mm | Avg high | Days ≥ 30 °C | Days < 10 °C | Daylight, h |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 15% | 26% | 84 | 6 °C | 0% | 77% | 8.9 † |
| February | 32% | 27% | 68 | 9 °C | 0% | 56% | 10.2 † |
| March | 59% | 25% | 79 | 13 °C | 0% | 26% | 11.8 |
| April | 72% | 25% | 77 | 17 °C | 0% | 6% | 13.5 |
| May | 66% | 32% | 101 | 20 °C | 2% | 1% | 15.0 |
| June | 58% | 27% | 88 | 25 °C | 17% | 0% | 15.8 |
| July | 52% | 22% | 75 | 27 °C | 30% | 0% | 15.5 |
| August | 56% | 20% | 82 | 27 °C | 27% | 0% | 14.2 |
| September | 74% | 20% | 87 | 23 °C | 6% | 0% | 12.5 |
| October | 76% | 22% | 103 | 17 °C | 0% | 4% | 10.8 † |
| November | 40% | 29% | 104 | 11 °C | 0% | 41% | 9.3 † |
| December | 16% | 31% | 100 | 7 °C | 0% | 70% | 8.6 † |
Best months are all months within 3 percentage points of the best one. † less than 11 hours of daylight — long stages get tight.
Wind by month
| Month | Wind Santenay → Chalon-sur-Saône, km/h | Headwind > 15 km/h, Santenay → Chalon-sur-Saône | Headwind > 15 km/h, Chalon-sur-Saône → Santenay | Better way |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | +0.2 | 6% | 7% | either |
| February | +0.2 | 7% | 8% | either |
| March | +0.3 | 8% | 8% | either |
| April | +0.2 | 7% | 6% | either |
| May | +0.4 | 6% | 6% | either |
| June | +0.3 | 4% | 4% | either |
| July | +0.5 | 3% | 3% | either |
| August | +0.4 | 2% | 2% | either |
| September | +0.2 | 4% | 4% | either |
| October | −0.1 | 7% | 7% | either |
| November | 0.0 | 7% | 7% | either |
| December | +0.1 | 6% | 7% | either |
Along the route (sections of about 25 km)
| km | Heading | Tailwind in October, km/h |
|---|---|---|
| 0–25 | SE | −1.3 |
| 25–51 | SW | −1.5 |
| 51–77 | S | −1.7 |
| 77–102 | SE | −1.1 |
| 102–127 | N | +1.8 |
| 127–153 | N | +1.8 |
| 153–170 | NW | +1.6 |
How to read the numbers
Wind is the 10 m wind of a 25-km grid cell, daytime hours 9:00–18:00 local solar time; at saddle height in a sheltered valley it is weaker, on a coast or ridge stronger. A positive value is a tailwind. ERA5 slightly over-counts days with ≥ 1 mm of rain (by about 5–7 percentage points) and underestimates daily highs by 1–2 °C. Good day = less than 1 mm of rain between 9:00 and 18:00 (riding hours, local solar time) and a high between 10 and 30 °C; rain at night or in the evening does not spoil it.